The authors examined the degree to which workers were engaging in financial, health, interpersonal/leisure, and work planning for retirement, exploring whether demographic and psychological variables inhibited or promoted planning in each of these domains. Planning in each domain was influenced by a unique set of variables. Goals emerged as a consistent and positive predictor of planning. Gender accounted for health and interpersonal/leisure planning, while work planning behavior was negatively predicted by income. Time perspective also helped to clarify the amount of retirement planning undertaken in the financial and interpersonal/leisure domains. Practical implications for designing retirement interventions are discussed.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

The role of contextual and unplanned factors on career decision-making was explored. Six hundred and fifty one university students at all levels were surveyed to collect data on career intentions, current enrolments, perceptions of influence of family, friends, teachers and the media, the role of serendipitous events and the education and current work of their family members. Results indicated that students perceived family and teachers to be significant influences on their career decisions. Furthermore, distal influences such as the media and web-based information were also significant. Students' current course enrolments and career intentions were significantly more likely to be in interest categories congruent with their father's job. Unplanned and serendipitous events were very commonly perceived to influence career decisions. The results are interpreted as providing support for an open systems theory of career decision-making. Practical counselling and future research implications are discussed.Re´sume´. Le rô le du contexte social et des e´ve´nements accidentels dans la prise de de´cision vocationnelle. On explore le roˆle des facteurs contextuels et inattendus dans la prise de de´cision vocationnelle. On a examine´651 e´tudiants universitaires appartenant a`tous les niveaux d'e´tudes pour rassembler des donne´es sur les intentions professionnelles, les choix d'inscription actuels, les perceptions de l'influence de la famille, des amis, des professeurs et des me´dias, le roˆle des e´ve´nements accidentels ainsi que le niveau d'e´tudes et professionnel des membres de leur famille. Les re´sultats montrent que les e´tudiants perc¸oivent la famille et les professeurs comme des sources d'influence significatives de leurs de´cisions vocationnelles. En outre, les influences distales comme celles e´manant des me´dias et de l'information recueillie sur la toile sont e´galement significatives. Les inscriptions aux cours et les intentions vocationnelles actuelles tendent a`tomber dans des cate´gories d'inte´reˆt qui correspondent au travail du pe`re. Les e´tudiants perc¸oivent divers e´ve´nements non planifie´s et accidentels comme influenc¸ant leurs de´cisions vocationnelles. Les re´sultats sont interpre´te´s comme venant a`l'appui d'une the´orie de syste`mes ouverts de prise de de´cision vocationnelle. Les implications de cette e´tude pour la consultation clinique et la recherche future sont examine´es.Zusammenfassung. Die Bedeutung des sozialen Umfelds und glu¨cklicher Umsta¨nde bei Berufsentscheidungen. Die Bedeutung von Einflu¨ssen aus dem Umfeld und von ungeplanten Faktoren auf Berufsentscheidungen wurde untersucht. 651 Universita¨tsstudenten aus allen Bereichen wurden befragt, um Daten u¨ber berufliche Pla¨ne, derzeitige Immatrikulationen, Wahrnehmungen der Einflu¨sse von Familie, Freunden, Lehrern und der Medien, aber auch u¨ber die Bedeutung von glu¨cklichen Umsta¨nden, dem Bildungsstand der der derzeitigen Berufsta¨tigkeit ihrer Familienmitglieder zu erheben. Die Ergebnisse belegen, dass die Studenten in ihr...

No abstract

Objective To investigate the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on the quality of life and social networks of older adults receiving community care services. Methods Quality of life and social network questionnaires were completed by older adults (n = 21) receiving home care services at three time points (2018, 2019, and during the first Australian COVID‐19 lockdown in 2020). Additional questions about technology use were included in 2020. Results Older adults’ quality of life significantly decreased during the pandemic compared to the prior year. During the pandemic, over 80% used technology to maintain contact with family and friends, and social networks did not change. Conclusion Government messages and support initiatives directed towards technology adoption among older adults receiving home care may assist with maintaining social connection during COVID‐19. Our findings add to the relatively limited understanding of the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on the socio‐emotional well‐being of older people.

Retirement is an inherently complex process due to the multitude of variables that influence it. The present article proposes that by combining our understanding of retirement phases (a conceptual framework) with a theory that specifies a general mechanism for retirement adaptation (a theoretical framework), we can improve how we research retirement. Accordingly, this study proposes and tests a model exploring the antecedents and consequences of the retirement process across three stages: Pre-retirement, Transition and Adaptation, using data collected from 550 Australian retirees. Multiple outcomes are explored, including adjustment, wellbeing and life satisfaction, as well as variables including planning, perception of wealth, resources and mastery. The model showed a significant influence of resources on both phases and outcomes, with mastery showing the strongest relationships of all the resources. Results suggest that outcomes in retirement may be improved by promoting retirement planning, improving exit conditions and building key resources, in particular, mastery. Overall, the model demonstrates the value of combining theory and conceptual frameworks to inform the specification of statistical models to research retirement. Research implications and alternative models are discussed.